Borrow From Friends: If you only need something temporarily, ask if a friend or neighbor would loan it to you. No sense buying your own if you only need the item for a short while. Save $ AND the environment.
Share With Friends: Share things like books, magazines, movies, games, and newspapers between friends and neighbors. You’ll have access to a much wider variety of items for no extra cost to you.
Tree-Free Home: As much as possible, create a tree-free home: replace paper napkins with cloth napkins replace paper towels with a special set of cloth towels/napkins use a digital device to make your grocery and to-do lists reuse envelopes and wrapping paper leave messages for your family on a whiteboard.
Avoid Creating Trash: Avoid creating trash wherever possible: when ordering food, refuse any unnecessary plastic utensils, straws, etc., buy ice cream in a cone instead of a cup, don't accept "free" promotional products, buy products with the least amount of packaging, etc. Every little bit of trash avoided does make a difference!
Important: St. Anthony's will be instituting a disposable water bottle ban during all of March and possibly beyond. Eliminating bottled water will have a significant positive impact on the environment as the majority of plastic bottles end up in landfills rather than being recycled.
APRIL: Earth Day
Tip 1: Earth day is coming up near the end of the month. Decide with your family what you will do to honour the earth. Perhaps yuo will plant a tree or make a pledge to share the earth in another way.
Tip 2: There are many ways to save paper and in turn save trees...
Go to the library rather than buying new books.
Always use paper on both sides.
Buy recycled paper products.
Tip 3:Save the earth by using natural cleaning products. Baking soda and vinegar work just as well as chemical products you buy at the store.
Tip 4: Reuse as much as possible. Egg cartons or lunchable trays make great holders for paint, beads, small plants and so much more!
Tip 5: Shop smart, buy bulk products with reduced packaging as much as possible, better yet, buy used items with NO packaging.
MARCH: For the month of March, we will be focusing on water conservation.
Tip 1: 65% of the water used in the home is used in the bathroom. To conserve water, turn off the tap when brushing your teeth or washing your face.
Tip 2: Keep a pitcher of water in the refrigerator rather than running the tap until water is cool enough to drink.
Tip 3: Wash only full loads in the dishwasher or washing machine, this can save up to 4,000 liters of water a month.
Tip 4: Shorten your shower by 1 or 2 minutes and you will save up to 600 litres of water a month.
FEBRUARY: During Febuary we will be focusing on things we can do to save plants and animals on our planet.
Tip 1: Almost half of the worlds rain forests are already gone for good, at this rate, by 2060 there will be none left. Encourage your friends and family to sponsor a rain forest, this will ensure less forests are deforested and they will remain well into the future.
Tip 2: Go to the zoo. Zoos and safari parks are committed to saving endangered species and your entrance fee will help to keep animals safe and fed.
Tip 3: Choose the fish you eat carefully. Due to commercial fishing many species of fish are under threat. Make sure not to eat these types so demand will lessen and fisherman will stop catching them.
Tip 4: Don't pick wild plants. Many rare plants around the world are in danger because people have picked them when out on hikes.
JANUARY - Smart Shopping
Tip 1:When ordering fast food, make sure to mention if you're eating in so that you don't end up with lots of excess packaging that you don't need.
Tip 2: Reusable bags aren't just for grocery shopping. Encourage your parents to take their own bags to places like the drug store and dollar store too.
Tip 3: Always read labels carefully when shopping. Many products claim to be "organic" or "natural" but in fact contain very few natural ingredients.
Tip 4: When buying large appliances always look for the most energy efficient model. Don't buy electric gadgets like juicers, indoor grills or plug-in toys that you will only end up using a few times then storing.
Tips for a Green Christmas 1. A real tree can be an environmental choice this Christmas. For every tree harvested at a tree farm, another 10 are planted to ensure a crop every year; and one acre of Christmas trees on a farm will produce enough oxygen to support about 18 people and remove up to 13 tonnes of airborne pollutants per year. Although Christmas trees have been a problem for landfills in the past, many municipalities now chip them for mulching material. If your town doesn't recycle, use the branches and needles for mulch in your garden.
2. Buy a potted tree native to your region from a nursery and plant it once the holidays are over. This may require digging a hole in the yard before the ground freezes and covering it with plywood until New Year's. Or buy a potted Norfolk Island Pine, which can survive indoors year-round and serve as your tree for many Christmases to come.
3. Switch your Christmas tree twinklers to LED (Light Emitting Diode) lights. LEDs come in the same brilliant colours as standard lights and use a fraction of the wattage of your older ones. They'll also hold up better to the task of putting up and taking down the strings every year, saving you from hours of serching for that one broken bulb.
3a, Purchase a timer so that your Christmas lights turn on at dusk and turn off automatically after 3-5 hours.
4. Before heading to the store for decorations, check your backyard. Make a centrepiece out of pinecones, or hang evergreen tree boughs over entranceways. Decorate your tree with edible decorations like popcorn strings or cranberry wreaths (thread 10 to 15 cranberries on a string and tie to create a wreath).
5. Instead of buying trinkets or packaging-laden gift baskets for friends, give a gift certificate for a dinner out or theatre tickets. Or make your own vouchers, good for a night of free babysitting.
6. Instead of battery-powered toys and games, keep the kids on your list active with a gift of sporting equipment or a voucher for an outdoor activity.
7. For the person who has everything, why not donate to your favourite charity on their behalf? Sponsor a child or donate livestock to a village in need through organizations like **World Vision Canada**. Then send an electronic greeting card, or one printed on recycled paper with details about the gift.
8. Before heading to the mall, check out online earth-friendly shopping tips and advice, like those found on the World Wildlife Fund's **Be, Live, Buy Different campaign website**.
9. When wrapping gifts, go for reusable cloth gift bags instead of the paper ones, or skip bags altogether by grabbing some vintage cookie tins at your local second-hand store to use instead.
10. Save any special gift wrap, ribbons and bows - When unwrapping large gifts, save the paper for reuse; it can often be cut down for smaller presents. Creased wrapping can be ironed flat. Ribbons and bows are easy to save and reuse.
DECEMBER Eco Christmas
Tip 1:Every year hundreds of thousands of trees are chopped down to make Christmas cards. Instead of mailing cards, use your computer to design cards and e-mail them to family and friends. You'll be saving paper and the fuel the post office uses to deliver the cards.
Tip 2:Make your own Christmas decorations. Make them out of food such as popcorn, gingerbread or tangerines that can be eaten by birds or composted when Christmas is over. Cut down evergreen branches rather than buying plastic garlands, the fresh boughs smell great and will decompose.
Tip 3: Make your own gifts instead of buying new. Better yet, don't give material gifts, give good deeds, or tickets to a sport event. You could even adopt an animal an behalf of someone else as a special and unique gift.
NOVEMBER Reuse and Recycle
Tip 1:The average person uses and disposes of the equivalent of 7 trees of paper a year. Save paper by always using both sides of paper and use scraps for shopping lists. Have you family invest in a white erase board to leave messages for one another instead of using sticky notes.
Tip 2: Be a creative recycler. Reuse items that would otherwise end up in the trash or recycling bin. For example cut up toilet paper rolls to make napkin rings or decorate old CD cases and make them into photo frames. Share your creative reuse and recycle ideas with the green team for a chance to win prizes.
Tip 3: Batteries contain hazardous substances that can leak into the soil if they end up in landfill sites, Invest in rechargeable batteries and a charger so you can use them again and again before recycling them properly.
Tip 4: Hold a neighbourhood swap shop. Instead of going out and buying new clothes, books, DVDs, etc gather up the items you no longer want and get together with some friends to trade items.
OCTOBER Reduce your carbon footprint
Tip 1: Your carbon footprint is a mesure of the damaging effect that human activities have on the planet in terms of the amount of greenhouse gases they produce. There are many websites with calculators which you can use to calculate your family carbon footprint. We all need to do our part to offset pollution. http://calc.zerofootprint.net/youth/iearn
Tip 2: If you're traveling a short distance walk or bike instead of starting the car. It will keep you and the environment more healthy.
Tip 3: Did you know that approximately 14% of methane comes from farting farm animals? This means cows cause more pollution than cars. To reduce your carbon footprint encourage your parents to cook vegetarian meals using local produce at least once or twice a week.
Tip 4:If you commit a carbon crime, try to offset it. For example, you got a ride to school, you can offset the pollution produced by switching off the computer or TV for the evening.
SEPTEMBER Do you live in a "Green" house? Tip 1: Unplug appliances when not being used (including TV's, computers, cell phone chargers, etc.) Tell your parents they could save up to 13% on their energy bill by just doing this.
Tip 2: Use appliances as efficiently as possible, for example, never run the dishwasher or washing machine unless they are full.
Tip 3: Check the thermostat. Lowering the temperature of heating and air conditioning by just 1.5 degrees Celsius can reduce your household greenhouse gases by 1 tonne. Make sure to dress in layers and use blankets rather than turning up the heat.
Tip 4: Make your own cleaning supplies. Commercial cleansers and the containers they come in pollute the environment. You can use baking soda and vinegar to clean bathroom and kitchen surfaces. Mix equal amounts of vinegar and water to clean windows and mirrors.
2012-13
2011-12
MAY- Tips for reducing consumption
Replace Disposables: Wherever possible, replace disposable products with reusable ones (i.e., food storage, batteries, ink cartridges (buy refill ink), water bottle, etc.).
Borrow From Friends: If you only need something temporarily, ask if a friend or neighbor would loan it to you. No sense buying your own if you only need the item for a short while. Save $ AND the environment.
Share With Friends: Share things like books, magazines, movies, games, and newspapers between friends and neighbors. You’ll have access to a much wider variety of items for no extra cost to you.
Tree-Free Home: As much as possible, create a tree-free home: replace paper napkins with cloth napkins replace paper towels with a special set of cloth towels/napkins use a digital device to make your grocery and to-do lists reuse envelopes and wrapping paper leave messages for your family on a whiteboard.
Avoid Creating Trash: Avoid creating trash wherever possible: when ordering food, refuse any unnecessary plastic utensils, straws, etc., buy ice cream in a cone instead of a cup, don't accept "free" promotional products, buy products with the least amount of packaging, etc. Every little bit of trash avoided does make a difference!
Important: St. Anthony's will be instituting a disposable water bottle ban during all of March and possibly beyond. Eliminating bottled water will have a significant positive impact on the environment as the majority of plastic bottles end up in landfills rather than being recycled.
APRIL:
Earth Day
Tip 1: Earth day is coming up near the end of the month. Decide with your family what you will do to honour the earth. Perhaps yuo will plant a tree or make a pledge to share the earth in another way.
Tip 2: There are many ways to save paper and in turn save trees...
Tip 3: Save the earth by using natural cleaning products. Baking soda and vinegar work just as well as chemical products you buy at the store.
Tip 4: Reuse as much as possible. Egg cartons or lunchable trays make great holders for paint, beads, small plants and so much more!
Tip 5: Shop smart, buy bulk products with reduced packaging as much as possible, better yet, buy used items with NO packaging.
MARCH:
For the month of March, we will be focusing on water conservation.
Tip 1: 65% of the water used in the home is used in the bathroom. To conserve water, turn off the tap when brushing your teeth or washing your face.
Tip 2: Keep a pitcher of water in the refrigerator rather than running the tap until water is cool enough to drink.
Tip 3: Wash only full loads in the dishwasher or washing machine, this can save up to 4,000 liters of water a month.
Tip 4: Shorten your shower by 1 or 2 minutes and you will save up to 600 litres of water a month.
FEBRUARY:
During Febuary we will be focusing on things we can do to save plants and animals on our planet.
Tip 1: Almost half of the worlds rain forests are already gone for good, at this rate, by 2060 there will be none left. Encourage your friends and family to sponsor a rain forest, this will ensure less forests are deforested and they will remain well into the future.
Tip 2: Go to the zoo. Zoos and safari parks are committed to saving endangered species and your entrance fee will help to keep animals safe and fed.
Tip 3: Choose the fish you eat carefully. Due to commercial fishing many species of fish are under threat. Make sure not to eat these types so demand will lessen and fisherman will stop catching them.
Tip 4: Don't pick wild plants. Many rare plants around the world are in danger because people have picked them when out on hikes.
JANUARY - Smart Shopping
Tip 1: When ordering fast food, make sure to mention if you're eating in so that you don't end up with lots of excess packaging that you don't need.
Tip 2: Reusable bags aren't just for grocery shopping. Encourage your parents to take their own bags to places like the drug store and dollar store too.
Tip 3: Always read labels carefully when shopping. Many products claim to be "organic" or "natural" but in fact contain very few natural ingredients.
Tip 4: When buying large appliances always look for the most energy efficient model. Don't buy electric gadgets like juicers, indoor grills or plug-in toys that you will only end up using a few times then storing.
Tips for a Green Christmas
1. A real tree can be an environmental choice this Christmas. For every tree harvested at a tree farm, another 10 are planted to ensure a crop every year; and one acre of Christmas trees on a farm will produce enough oxygen to support about 18 people and remove up to 13 tonnes of airborne pollutants per year. Although Christmas trees have been a problem for landfills in the past, many municipalities now chip them for mulching material. If your town doesn't recycle, use the branches and needles for mulch in your garden.
2. Buy a potted tree native to your region from a nursery and plant it once the holidays are over. This may require digging a hole in the yard before the ground freezes and covering it with plywood until New Year's. Or buy a potted Norfolk Island Pine, which can survive indoors year-round and serve as your tree for many Christmases to come.
3. Switch your Christmas tree twinklers to LED (Light Emitting Diode) lights. LEDs come in the same brilliant colours as standard lights and use a fraction of the wattage of your older ones. They'll also hold up better to the task of putting up and taking down the strings every year, saving you from hours of serching for that one broken bulb.
3a, Purchase a timer so that your Christmas lights turn on at dusk and turn off automatically after 3-5 hours.
4. Before heading to the store for decorations, check your backyard. Make a centrepiece out of pinecones, or hang evergreen tree boughs over entranceways. Decorate your tree with edible decorations like popcorn strings or cranberry wreaths (thread 10 to 15 cranberries on a string and tie to create a wreath).
5. Instead of buying trinkets or packaging-laden gift baskets for friends, give a gift certificate for a dinner out or theatre tickets. Or make your own vouchers, good for a night of free babysitting.
6. Instead of battery-powered toys and games, keep the kids on your list active with a gift of sporting equipment or a voucher for an outdoor activity.
7. For the person who has everything, why not donate to your favourite charity on their behalf? Sponsor a child or donate livestock to a village in need through organizations like **World Vision Canada**. Then send an electronic greeting card, or one printed on recycled paper with details about the gift.
8. Before heading to the mall, check out online earth-friendly shopping tips and advice, like those found on the World Wildlife Fund's **Be, Live, Buy Different campaign website**.
9. When wrapping gifts, go for reusable cloth gift bags instead of the paper ones, or skip bags altogether by grabbing some vintage cookie tins at your local second-hand store to use instead.
10. Save any special gift wrap, ribbons and bows - When unwrapping large gifts, save the paper for reuse; it can often be cut down for smaller presents. Creased wrapping can be ironed flat. Ribbons and bows are easy to save and reuse.
DECEMBER
Eco Christmas
Tip 1: Every year hundreds of thousands of trees are chopped down to make Christmas cards. Instead of mailing cards, use your computer to design cards and e-mail them to family and friends. You'll be saving paper and the fuel the post office uses to deliver the cards.
Tip 2: Make your own Christmas decorations. Make them out of food such as popcorn, gingerbread or tangerines that can be eaten by birds or composted when Christmas is over. Cut down evergreen branches rather than buying plastic garlands, the fresh boughs smell great and will decompose.
Tip 3: Make your own gifts instead of buying new. Better yet, don't give material gifts, give good deeds, or tickets to a sport event. You could even adopt an animal an behalf of someone else as a special and unique gift.
NOVEMBER
Reuse and Recycle
Tip 1: The average person uses and disposes of the equivalent of 7 trees of paper a year. Save paper by always using both sides of paper and use scraps for shopping lists. Have you family invest in a white erase board to leave messages for one another instead of using sticky notes.
Tip 2: Be a creative recycler. Reuse items that would otherwise end up in the trash or recycling bin. For example cut up toilet paper rolls to make napkin rings or decorate old CD cases and make them into photo frames. Share your creative reuse and recycle ideas with the green team for a chance to win prizes.
Tip 3: Batteries contain hazardous substances that can leak into the soil if they end up in landfill sites, Invest in rechargeable batteries and a charger so you can use them again and again before recycling them properly.
Tip 4: Hold a neighbourhood swap shop. Instead of going out and buying new clothes, books, DVDs, etc gather up the items you no longer want and get together with some friends to trade items.
OCTOBER
Reduce your carbon footprint
Tip 1: Your carbon footprint is a mesure of the damaging effect that human activities have on the planet in terms of the amount of greenhouse gases they produce. There are many websites with calculators which you can use to calculate your family carbon footprint. We all need to do our part to offset pollution. http://calc.zerofootprint.net/youth/iearn
Tip 2: If you're traveling a short distance walk or bike instead of starting the car. It will keep you and the environment more healthy.
Tip 3: Did you know that approximately 14% of methane comes from farting farm animals? This means cows cause more pollution than cars. To reduce your carbon footprint encourage your parents to cook vegetarian meals using local produce at least once or twice a week.
Tip 4: If you commit a carbon crime, try to offset it. For example, you got a ride to school, you can offset the pollution produced by switching off the computer or TV for the evening.
SEPTEMBER
Do you live in a "Green" house?
Tip 1: Unplug appliances when not being used (including TV's, computers, cell phone chargers, etc.) Tell your parents they could save up to 13% on their energy bill by just doing this.
Tip 2: Use appliances as efficiently as possible, for example, never run the dishwasher or washing machine unless they are full.
Tip 3: Check the thermostat. Lowering the temperature of heating and air conditioning by just 1.5 degrees Celsius can reduce your household greenhouse gases by 1 tonne. Make sure to dress in layers and use blankets rather than turning up the heat.
Tip 4: Make your own cleaning supplies. Commercial cleansers and the containers they come in pollute the environment. You can use baking soda and vinegar to clean bathroom and kitchen surfaces. Mix equal amounts of vinegar and water to clean windows and mirrors.